God is With You!
Scripture – Isaiah 7:14 (NIV)
Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel.
Focus
Long ago, God promised through the prophet Isaiah that one day a child would be born with the name “Immanuel.” This child, and this name, would reassure God’s people of God’s presence with them. Today, we know Jesus as Immanuel. Thus we are reminded and reassured of God’s presence with us. Yes, God is with you today!
Devotion
When Ahaz was king of Judah in the 8th century B.C., the northern kingdom of Israel allied itself with Syria against Judah. No doubt this deeply troubled Ahaz and his subjects. They would surely be overthrown by the superior power of their enemies. But, through Isaiah, God reassured Ahaz, promising doom upon those who would attack Judah. More importantly, however, the Lord also spoke of a sign of his blessing: “The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel” (Isaiah 7:14).
Few passages of Scripture have been the subject of greater scholarly debate than this one. Should the Hebrew word almah be translated as “virgin” or “young woman”? Both are possible in Hebrew. Even if we decide on the language to use, just who is this woman? And who is her son? If this prophecy speaks of the birth of Jesus, how can it be relevant to Ahaz and Judah centuries earlier?
I won’t be able to answer these questions here. But they mustn’t distract us from the main point of this prophecy. God is reassuring the family of David. The center of divine encouragement is the truth conveyed in the name of the baby: Immanuel, which means in Hebrew, “God is with us.” Through this name, God was saying to Ahaz and Judah that in the midst of trying and scary times, he was with them.
And so God is with us, no matter what’s going on in our lives. In the Gospel of Matthew we learn that Jesus is Immanuel—not in that this is his given name, but in that he, more than any other sign, demonstrates God’s presence with us (see Matthew 1:23). This presence continues after Jesus’s ascension to heaven through the gift of the Spirit. As he promised at the end of Matthew, Jesus is with us always (Matthew 28:20). Of course, Jesus is not with us today in the flesh. He is Immanuel through the abiding and empowering presence of the Holy Spirit.
The fundamental truth of Isaiah 7:14 remains. God is with us. God is with us now. God is with us when we go through difficult times. God is with us when we rejoice and when we weep. God is lovingly with us and nothing in all creation can take us away from God and his love (Romans 8:38-39). This is good news, indeed!
Reflect
Do you live as if Jesus were really with you through the Spirit?
If you truly and fully believed that God was with you today, what difference would this make?
What might you dare to do today because of God’s presence and power in your life?
Act
As you go through this week, pause to remember the fact that God is with you. You might even set a phone alarm or do something that will jog your memory of this amazing truth: Immanuel . . . God is with us. God is with you!
Pray
Gracious God, we may never be able to sort out the historical and literary challenges of this verse from Isaiah. But we do know that its basic promise is clear: You are with us. Through Jesus—Immanuel—and through your Spirit, you are with us today. Thank you!
Help me, Lord, really to believe this! And help me to live as if it really were true. Give me faith when I doubt. Give me boldness when I’m afraid. Give me patience when I’m rushed. Give me joy when I’m sorrowful. Give me the power to do that which you lead me to do today. May I live today, and every day, in the reality of Immanuel. O God, you are with us. You are with me! Amen.
Find all Life for Leaders devotions here. Explore what the Bible has to say about work at the unique website of our partners, the High Calling archive, hosted by the Theology of Work Project. Reflection on today’s Life for Leaders theme can be found here: Immanuel
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Mark D. Roberts
Senior Strategist
Dr. Mark D. Roberts is a Senior Strategist for Fuller’s Max De Pree Center for Leadership, where he focuses on the spiritual development and thriving of leaders. He is the principal writer of the daily devotional, Life for Leaders,...